1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to containers. More particularly, this invention relates to a combined storage, shipping, display and dispensing container for roll material. While the invention is adapted for use with a variety of roll materials, it has particular application in the carpet industry.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various forms of goods come in rolls such as, for example, paper, textiles, broadloom carpets, outdoor carpet, grass carpet, resilient floor covering and the like. Many such roll products and in particular such products as grass carpet made of polypropylene face yarns have a slippery surface which makes the roll prone to coning. Coning or telescoping is the undesired condition wherein internal layers of a roll product shift axially such that the edges of each layer of the roll no longer terminate in a common plane. The layers close to the core of the material tend to shift axially outward further than the layers of the outer periphery of the roll. In addition to making handling and storage of the roll product awkward, coning substantially increases the risk of damage to the product, particularly at the ends and increases the number of returned orders.
To this end, customarily carpet rolls of a particular style are ordered in quantities of several rolls and shipped to a retail outlet under a single order. Should any one of the rolls cone and be refused, the entire order is returned to the manufacturer notwithstanding the fact that there is nothing wrong with one or more rolls.
Another problem with coning is that it may prevent a roll product such as grass carpet or outdoor carpet from being displayed on conventional display racks. Such display racks normally include side supports, spaced slightly greater than the width of the roll being displayed. The rack generally comprises two end frames which may be in the form of A-frames between which several rolls of carpet are rotatably supported. The rolls may be supported one above the other. Each roll is usually supported by passing a roll bar through its hollow central core over which the product is wound. Opposite ends of the bar are seated on suitable supporting hooks and allow the product to be readily unwound. Since the spacing of the side supports or support frames is only slightly greater than the width of the carpet roll, any lateral shifting or coning of the carpet layers will either prevent the roll from being placed in the rack or cause binding of the edges of the carpet against the side supports to make unwinding of the carpet roll very difficult.
Another problem with handling of roll products is damage to the pile face. Finished textile products are wound upon manufacture into rolls from which rolls of suitable lengths may be cut for use. These rolls are wrapped for storage and shipping. Frequently, the material is wound with the backside of the material up to protect the pile face from damage during storage or shipment. However, once the roll has been shipped to the retail outlet, the carpet must be rewound with the pile face outward for display purposes. It will be appreciated that this rewinding step is time consuming and expensive.
It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide a combined storage, shipping, display and dispensing package of roll materials which avoids the aforementioned disadvantages and which is relatively simple in construction, lightweight, and inexpensive to manufacture.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a combined shipping and display package which prevents coning of a roll product.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a combined shipping and display container which enables a carpet roll product to be shipped with the pile face inward yet avoids the necessity of rewinding the carpet roll at the retail outlet prior to display and sale.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a combined shipping and display container for a roll product provided with end pieces which protect the ends of the roll and which prevent coning as well as facilitate the unwinding of the product.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide a combined shipping and display container wherein the amount of material remaining on the roll within the container may be easily determined while the container is closed thereby providing maximum protection of the contents.